Month: February 2024

Even with this extra leap year day I am way behind, yet again 😳  It is what it is! What a busy month is has been. Never ever did I expect all this research re moving here to take so much time. But then this is Mexico and many things happen slowly. And of course there are always glitches.

The first main thing that we have accomplished was to find a doctor. One that comes very highly recommended and that we both like. I even told him that I was an RN years ago.  I usually don’t tell doctors that because of how they many think of my and my knowledge and huge variety of questions. Colin and I are very healthy and likely won’t see him until early 2025.

Meanwhile the biggest time taker is finding International Medical health insurance. We really only need to be covered here in Mexico with the option of topping up if we travel to Tucson for a few things that we have yet to find here or head back to Canada. We spent several hours a week ago in a few of the larger stores here in Mazatlan and Sams Club. We walked every aisle and I made notes of what I could by here ( usually more expensive but that is okay ).  We really are woking to prepare for the move.

We both really want to get back home ( April 30th ) and list and sell our home. Hopefully the people who were interested last spring are still interested. We are mentally ready now for the big change. Whether we sell or we don’t we plan to start cleaning out our home. Of course that includes selling everything from our white leather sofa to desks to china to teak and rosewood furniture and everything else. We have started to go thru cupboards here in the RV to discard what is no longer needed and to organize things better. We will be bring in a small amount of things for home. I already have 12 one glasses in the RV and I don’t need more. In fact 6 is enough. I probably have at least 20 more at home.

I also spent hours online the other day looking for a better way to store certain items, like my office files, even years of income tax stuff. I have never been happy with how my cups, glasses ( that includes wine ) and my plates and bowls are placed. We now have that figured out. So many many changes.

However we are both ecstatic to be able to live here full time. When it gets too hot in the summer we will head inland and up in elevation to cooler temperatures. We are free to do what we want to and when we want to.

The most important thing is to shut down our company. Likely it will take two years. We are trying to get it done sooner. Hopefully we will be able to complete the process from here in Mexico.

Finding a bank here has taken days and days of research. Last week we spent two days opening a two accounts, one for each of us. That way we can split our money and have it fully insured with the Mexican bank. Things did not go as smoothly as expected but we can handle the bit of disruption. By next December all will be fully functioning.

We are trying to get as many details out of the way so that we can have a month off from researching before we have to return to Canada. Looking forward to that relaxation time.

I am also in the midst of booking cataract surgery, my vein injections, dental care, etc for once we return home. If the house sells quickly who knows how the next few months will go.

So that is pretty much why I have not had time to post. Some days I don’t even get out of the RV.

Finally finally my computer is supposed to be repaired tomorrow. the tech was sick earlier and had to cancel. This means so much to me. As to the new computer colours, I chose the green and Colin says the red – but it is labeled as pink so that might change.

Thanks for hanging in with me. Not to worry as every moment/event will still be posted as I have all photos and need to record the memories.

Oops it is 9:30PM and Colin has held dinner for me so I could do this post. So no time to check for any errors. Let me know if I should change something.

 

Today was day two of rain. The road is a mess but all of the pea gravel we put down when we got here really helped. Colin spent a good deal of time playing his guitar and cleaning the house. I remained glued to my computer. However I am making progress. We have chosen our bank and have an appointment there next week to set up accounts. Also Tuesday will have us meeting our new doctor. I have lists of lists now and will be working on health insurance next.

The girls are not happy at missing their beach walk the past few days.They have so much extra energy.  However as soon as we open the door they stop in their tracks and turn around to come in. They do not like cold ( 64F ) and especially not rain. Funny how they don’t mind being in the cold ocean swimming 😎 Still working on getting my computer back up to normal. I looked at new ones online today. I will get a new one perhaps in June. My desktop is 21.5″ and the new iMacs are 24″. Colin just now informed me that he also will be getting a new iMac as he prefers the mouse 😮  We may or many not get a new laptop for use while travelling etc. We should be good for the next ten years or more. Surprise they come in a variety of colours which remind me of our first computer.

For certain the next post will be that wonderful private party we attended.

They say that at least and additional  500,000.00 people visited Mazatlan this past weekend. The city was full. I recently read that the city will expand by 1.5 million bodies for the Eclipse on April 8th. I honestly don’t know how many extra there will be for Semana Santa, but I’m sure the beaches will be packed. Sometimes you can’t even see the sand because of the people crowding the beach. That will definitely be a day that we stay home.

Someone used a drone and filmed the entire event and put it on public media. Great job. Sit back and enjoy the show.

This one is a reel ( I have no idea what that means ). It begins with the navel combat and goes on for about 20 minutes. Click on the link below. Everyone said they were the best fireworks ever.

Click here to see the drone link. Sadly I have no idea how to fast forward the reel to the better parts a wee bit into the film.

As we all know the next day was Sunday, February 11th and the first parade of Carnaval.

After the parade folks partied until about 6AM. Monday was a quieter day, many came to the Isla and the beach. Colin and I however were invited to a fabulous private party. More on that in the next post. Tuesday was the final day of Carnaval and known as the second parade day. This time the parade did the route in reverse.

I hope you enjoyed your wee tour of Mazatlan Carnaval 2024. Next post will be of the wonderful party we attended last Monday. We took Tuesday to recover from all the activities and I had my 90 minute massage today. I am ready to get back on track.

A few messages for you from the girls 😎 Hope that today was special for each of you.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Carnaval began Thursday. The theme this year is Eclipse Barroco, it’s a combination of celebrating the total eclipse of the sun on April 8, and honouring the baroque era, 1600 to around 1750, which was lush and lavish. Mazatlan is ready to party. All the giant paper mache sculptures called monigotes are up along the Malecon and a few in other areas in town. At this point Colin and I have no plans to go into Mazatlan proper for the festivities. The fireworks are tonight and rather than being on the Malecon or on a vessel we will watch them from our own site on the Isthmus.

Last Wednesday I had a partial massage. Katia hand to deal with something that happened to one of her sons and left early.

The days seem to be filled to the brim. It just happens. So I have not yet got my wedding ring in for repairs. It wil have to wait until after Carnaval.

So I have done a very foolish thing. I am still running Mojave 14 as my iOS operating system. It is no longer supported. I asked for help and someone volunteered to help. They have the same iMac as I do – exactly and have done this upgrade often enough that it would not be a problem. Well l am now running Catalina but don’t have control of my photos and a few other issues. The only way I was able to operate today was by purchasing 50G on iCloud. I was surprised that the person who helped me is no longer available for follow up. I can’t even find the photo edit area 😥  Are any of you iMac users who could help? I can call you 😳

I am still dealing with my original compromised credit card from last November. I have spent hours and hours on the phone and have had to admit defeat. They need to call me at home ( well I am not there ) or next me at home ( I am not there ) in order to bypass the two step security system. I am on my Mexican SIM card here and those options are useless. So I am out about $4500.00 which could’ve been paid  for with my points, I haven given up 😮

Happy Carnaval everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friday morning started off with three emails threatening to cancel our Shaw Direct Satellite server – TV 😮 First of all Shaw only has a 1 800 # which I can’t call from my Mexican cell phone. I tried reaching out online and finally found a chat line. You may recall how I had a great deal of trouble with my personal Visa card, how it had been compromised and they had to send me a new card here via UPS. For some reason Visa had also put a hold on my card. Very long story short my Shaw account could not be paid via the auto payment  I had set up years ago. The new credit card had four different last numbers and a new CCV. I was told that I had to pay $110,60 ASAP to save our account. However because I was in Mexico they claimed that I could not see my account online. Nor where they able to send me the online form to change my credit card number re the auto payment. He just told me to pay it via my bank. Okay but first I wanted to know the dates of my billing cycle and from what date to what date was outstanding. He basically refused to give me that information. After a ninety minute chat he hung up. I was able to screen capture must of our conversation. Needless to say I will be pushing this once we return to Canada. He even refused to put our account on hold 😥 I was beyond frustrated.

My next challenge was fo figure why my free Fongo app was not working. Turns out I had to put $5.00 on the account which happens about every 4 years. My Fongo number is US why means that I can call both US and Canadian toll free numbers. I use it often. I was so relieved when I dialed the Shaw 1 800 number and it went though. Ten minutes later Fongo disconnected. This happened about six times. Finally I Googled why is Fongo keeps disconnectioning and found a wee fix to to adjust in settings. That done I set in to wait for my one hour plus wait to speak to a human. Customer service is certainly not what it used to be. Actually I don’t think it even follows the definition of customer service. Good customer service means consistently meeting customers’ expectations. Great customer service is quick, easy, personalized, and empathetic. Companies that deliver excellent customer service take the time needed to understand the needs of their unique customer base.Jan 25, 2024

I finally connected with a lovely woman who despite her constant yawning ( perhaps it was the end of her shift ) spent close to an hour sorting out my dilemma. I was able to pay a minimum amount owing and put in my new Visa card information into the system as well as place out TV satellite on hold until we get home. No charge to do so and no charge to restart once we are back home. Somehow at 4.5hour of being not the phone Friday a lovely chilled glass of white wine appeared. Colin is so vey special. I was revived sufficiently to complete the Shaw incident.

I actually had one more business call to deal with. But suddenly the girls were screeching. Now what. If possible it was even more frantic than their feral cat cries. We had a rooster in our yard 🙁 OMG 😡  Now what.

The rooster was flushed out of the compound at least three times twice and another time with the hose. It just kept coming back. The rooster even figured how to get under the netting fence. This critter was to determined to live here but it couldn’t because of the dogs. There was so much activity that photos were few and far between.

Joe held the bird in the back seat while Colin drove them all to the Colonia where it was let go. Colin said that it just stood there looking at them wondering what was going on. Fortunately it did not poop in the car. Mean while the girls somehow jumped over the fence and were running wild up and down the road. Thank goodness Linda from upstairs called to me. That was when I became rather distraught. So many cars and ATVs on the road and the sun was setting. The girls were totally out of control. Fortunately Russel rushed down his stairs to come to my aid. We finally got the girls corralled into the yard and then I got them into the RV. The more they barked the more hoarse they became. Finally Colin got back. What a loco Friday.

Neither of us recall much of Saturday. Colin went into town and got money as we seem to go thru it rather quickly and a few groceries. He also picked up the dog blanket laundry. I had thrown my nightie and white sweater in with that load. Well those were stained and had a chemical smell.  At this point some of these clothes are on third 3rd wash. I have chosen to not deal with this issue in the near future.

So yesterday was Sunday and I just let the day happen. And happen it did. I believe that we had eleven guests yesterday. At one point there was us and two other couples. The others just seemed to pop in one after the other. Twas a fun day.

Definitely a busy eight days 😎

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

First of all how ever did it get to be February. Our time here is flying past. I try to spend so many hours everyday researching banking, health insurance and other things we will need when we return here in October.  It took two days to find a medical doctor and the very next day one of my neighbours went to see him. Turns out that he will be perfect for us. We were to meet him this past week but life got in the way.

For the first time in my life I attended an online celebration of life. Jeanne, a special person in my life passed away last week and her family honoured her this past Sunday. Many were there in person but about 37 of us were able to be a part of the ceremony online. Jeanne was my age, a very happy, positive lady and well loved by her enormous family. This event shook me up and I took a few days to re evaluate my life and goals. How wonderful that we were able to spend some quality time over the years. She will be missed but forever remembered in our hearts.

Last Tuesday there was a wind storm. We were fine but about 11PM, Joe & Genie needed help with their awning because of the strength of the wind. We got it all taken apart but the awning ( electric ) would not roll in as the wind was so much stronger than the motor. So it took all four of us to put it out again and secure it with Colin’s heavy duty awning strap, rebar stakes and about four other ropes keeping it from going airborne. Sadly the wind caused several fibre optic wires to come down and we lost our internet.

Of course I injured my neck and back. However Katia was coming for my 90 minute massage about 11AM Wednesday. I had seen her just seven days prior ( for the first time in four weeks – because of her wedding ) and we were both surprised at how good my body was doing. No major aches/pains nor tightness. Sadly the wind storm changed all that. First thing Katia said what the heck happened to me. I was a tight mess. It literally took two hours of hard work on her part to get me close to normal. She was even able to level my legs. Colin muscle checked me the next day and I was back to near normal. Thank goodness.

Late Wednesday afternoon our third site was filled. We are officially full until March 1st.

The best day of the week was Thursday when very long time friend and blog reader came fo a visit. We had met Gisele and her husband Gunther RVing in Ramona, California in early April 2012. Sadly Gunther passed six years ago and we lost touch with Gisele. It was a wonderful surprise to receive an email from her that she and her friend Diane were in Mazatlan for a few weeks.

Through Gisele and Gunther we met Hannelore and Peter who also live in Kamloops. We met them several times over the years. Enjoyed several afternoons at the symphony followed by some lovely meals.

And then there was Frantic Friday. I will save that for the next post.